The PS parliamentary leader expressed his belief on Friday that, after the veto on the privatization of TAP, the government and the President of the Republic will continue to work together to “achieve a good result” in this process.
“I think that the Prime Minister’s Office has already indicated that it will of course take into account the series of aspects raised by the President of the Republic in the communication he has made, and that in the normal legislative process they will certainly keep communicating to achieve a good result”said Eurico Brilhante Dias in Coimbra.
The Socialist leader responded to Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa’s veto of the government decree setting the conditions for the reprivatization of TAP, asking for clarification on state intervention, sale or acquisition of the company’s assets before privatization and transparency of the entire operation.
This was reported by António Costa’s office in a brief note released shortly after the decision to veto the diploma became known “the Prime Minister takes note of the concerns of His Excellency the President of the Republic, which will be given due consideration”.
Speaking to journalists, Eurico Brilhante Dias emphasized that the most important thing for the Portuguese is that the airline “shows good results” and remains strategic for Portugal.
“The most important thing for the Portuguese is to have a clear, of course transparent process, but a process in which the Portuguese understand that the most important thing is that TAP remains a strategic asset for the country”claimed Brilhante Dias, emphasizing that parliament and the parliamentary group are not part of this process.
When asked whether the veto could weaken the ongoing privatization process, the leader of the Socialist Bank believed that it would even strengthen it, on the border, through the interaction between two sovereign bodies: the Presidency of the Republic and the Government .
‘We shouldn’t create big dramas’said Eurico Brilhante Dias, for whom it is “absolutely admirable” that the PSD has chosen to comment on the veto of the President of the Republic “the same protagonists of that privatization carried out in the dead of night”referring to Social Democratic Vice President Miguel Pinto Luz.
This veto was announced through a note published on the official website of the Presidency of the Republic on the Internet, stating that Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa “decided to return TAP’s privatization diploma to the government, requesting clarification of three aspects that it considers essential”.
The head of state asks the government for clarification “the ability of the state to monitor and intervene in a strategic company like TAP; the issue of disposal or acquisition of assets even before privatization; the transparency of the entire operation”is added in the same note.
In a letter addressed to the Prime Minister, António Costa, published on the Internet together with this note on the official website of the Presidency of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa states that “additional clarifications were requested from the Government” regarding “these three specific but crucial issues”.
“Unfortunately, the answers came yesterday [quinta-feira] received has not enabled us to fully clarify three aspects that I consider essential”sorry.
Source: DN
